The Lovable Lory, colorful and playful

The Lovable Lory

Lory – Entertaining clowns of the bird world!

The Lory is one of the lesser-known, but among the most beautiful of aviary and cage birds. Today’s choice of companion birds include many options beyond the wonderful budgies or parakeets and canaries that our grandparents kept in cages in their living rooms. The colorful macaws and conures are quite popular and can be found in many homes. One very delightful bird that is not as common as a pet bird is the Lory or Lorikeet. Many have yet to enjoy the lovable lories.

Lory or Lorikeet?

The Lories encompass both the long-tailed Lorikeet varieties and the shorter tailed Lories, and both are equally beautiful, entertaining, lovable lories! Most often seen in brilliant reds or a rainbow color with red or orange, blue, and green, these colorful birds have personalities to match their brilliant feathers.

The Lory needs space to play

Some companion birds are known for being docile snugglers; such is not the case with most Lories. They are very playful and will utilize every inch of the large cages or aviaries that they so much need. No circus performer could outperform the lory who is privileged to have multiple swings, chains, and toys to keep his mind occupied. Some are great snugglers, but only on their own terms and in their own time. They possess a clownish personality that seems to have no boundaries and can be far more entertaining than any tv program.

Your Lory will amaze you!

One of ours was famous for his “wanna take a bath?” comments. The first time he asked this, we were all quite unaware of his pranks. My son went close to his cage to ask him what he was saying and Reginald repeated his question, then quickly picked up his bath water and threw it at a very shocked boy! Lesson learned? Reginald had a large working vocabulary and could put together some amazing thoughts and actions with his words. Also, we quickly replaced his bath dish with a weighted one.

Red Lory

Lories can be quite choosy about their companions. Each seems to have his or her own preference for humans and those not chosen will know they are not welcome; Lories are very outspoken about their choices. Reginald was well known for his name change, as well. He came to us with the name “Lory, “ but the first day he loudly announced, “My name is Reginald!” and from that day, so it was.

Kissing not recommended!

The lovable lories can be a bit nippy, especially if they have not been carefully handraised. They are quite intelligent and some develop incredible vocabularies, in addition to mimicking various sounds they hear.

Rainbow Lory

Like many parrot type birds, most Lories can be loud and may not be suitable for apartments or homes with close neighbors. Of course, they have plenty of quieter times, but the screeching that they are capable of is rarely controlled completely. Fortunately, most are only loudly vocal for short spurts and many learn to redirect the noise to more entertaining pursuits.

That Lory tongue and the diet it consumes.

Another problem that Lories have is that they are brush-tongued fruit eaters. Some commercial diets are now available to feed them properly, along with some fresh fruit and a sampling of vegetables, but with the unique diet comes a very different cleanliness issue. Seed eaters will toss their seeds and hulls about and create a mess that must be swept frequently.

From one mess to another

Additionally, Lories waste is usually mostly liquid and will often be found a distance from the cage. It stains and is quite messy, making them a less than ideal bird to be kept in a small cage surrounded by white carpet. Lories that can be kept in very safe outside aviaries might be the easiest to keep. However, they can be kept inside if precautions for their mess are met. The normal seed catchers will not solve the problem; it’s best to keep them away from areas where stains are a problem; many are kept in aviary cages surrounded by covered tiles that can be easily wiped clean.

Healthy = Happy

Generally healthy, lories require a special diet and owners need to be aware of the few health issues. Request that your pet store stock a fresh supply of a quality food and locate an avian vet to avoid the emergency rush.

For those families willing to overcome the diet and messiness issues, the Lory may be the perfect family pet. If you choose to include one of the lovable lories into your family, be prepared for many years of enriched life and pure entertainment!